The Welsh actor emails his fellow Emmy Award winner to congratulate him on the
'best acting' he has ever seen

Bryan Cranston has doubtless received many gushing fan letters, given the way Breaking Bad managed to capture the world's imagination – but few have come from someone as famous as Sir Anthony Hopkins. As was revealed on Monday, the Oscar winner and screen legend, 75, contacted Cranston through his agency, UTA, to congratulate him on the series.

While it remains unclear whether the letter is genuine, actors Steven Michael Quezada (Agent Gomez) and Charlie Baker (Skinny Pete) seem convinced, sharing it with their followers on Facebook.

Hopkins, himself a two-time Emmy Award winner, had high praise for Cranston’s much-vaunted performance, describing it as “the best acting I have seen – ever”. Like many British fans who came late to the series via Netflix, Hopkins admitted to watching the entire 62-episode run in just two weeks and being addicted to the programme.

The plain-talking Welshman was clear that his admiration was genuine and not the typical “smoke blowing and sickening bullshit” that is often associated with Hollywood. So moved was he that he claims to have been “compelled” to write the email at midnight.

Despite addressing the letter to Cranston, Hopkins also praised “every department” for managing to “keep the discipline and control from the beginning to the end”.

The Silence of the Lambs star is the most recent in a long list of screen stars to remark favourably on the quality of current television dramas, likening the work to “great Jacobean, Shakespearean and or Greek Tragedy”.

Hopkins is not the only famous Briton to be captivated by the series, as actor Dean Norris, who plays Hank, recently told the Radio Times that Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards is a fan and asked him for a hug. Norris also disclosed that the cast members often heard about the “kind of cool people that like the show”.

Even so, the fact that a septuagenarian star of screen and stage took the time to contact Cranston must be especially heartening for him and the show’s creator, Vince Gilligan. Such lofty praise from such an esteemed source is sure to attract even more viewers for the series Guinness World Records recently named the most critically praised of all time.